


Reverb

by deerkota



Category: Transformers - All Media Types
Genre: Established Relationship, First "I love you"s, Fluff, Not Beta Read, Other, bee gets to talk, blitzwing is alive for some reason, charbee, don't question me lol, minor movie spoiler (bumblebee 2018), these two dorks are just super lovesick
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-27
Updated: 2019-04-03
Packaged: 2019-12-25 09:38:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 8,410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18258677
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deerkota/pseuds/deerkota
Summary: Charlie, who has been mentoring under Ratchet in the works of Cybertronian technology, helps patch up Bumblebee after he gets into a scuffle. With his feelings laid bare to Charlie, he allows her time to think over his confession – she knows that she loves Bumblebee, but is she willing to commit to an eternal bond between spark and soul?





	1. Patches and Parts

Charlie sat on the stiff, oversized makeshift couch inside the base, zoning out as a show she didn’t care much at all for droned on from the television. The weather was muggy from the sun beating down all day, and insects buzzed in the warmth of the early evening. She could hear Ratchet tinkering at his work station in the background; he’d shooed the young woman away once he no longer needed her ‘undersized organic servos’ to help him work on more delicate parts of the machinery that was usually done by mini drones of some sort back on Cybertron. 

She was pulled out of her thoughts as a loud buzz sounded throughout the hangar, signaling the opening of the giant bay doors. Concern etched on her face as she saw Bumblebee limp inside, one servo clutching his opposite arm. He had gone out on a mission that she wasn’t allowed to know the details of, but she was assured that there would be no combat involved.

“Bee!” she cried, jumping off of her perch. She made her way to him and tried to help support his weight, futile as it was. She led him to the medic bay behind Ratchet’s workbench where he laid down on one of the cots. 

“Hop up here, girlie,” Ratchet said, pulling a tall, wide stepladder up to the cot so she could help. “Listen up kid, we’ve got work to do. If yer gonna short a circuit or something and not gonna help, get outta the way.” Charlie knew by now that he only said things like this out of concern for the bot on the table; he wouldn’t be able to handle the human if she were freaking out or crying as well as take care of Bumblebee. He knew how much the two meant to each other.

“I’ve got this,” she told the older bot, steeling herself. ‘It’s not that bad,’ she told herself, ‘He’ll be fine.’ Immediately the two began working, Charlie fixing up the small, obvious issues such as wiring and stopping fluid from leaking. Ratchet, meanwhile, worked on the more complex issues, like the arm that looked as if it would fall off any minute. 

After what seemed like hours, Ratchet sifted through some spare parts and pulled out a cylindrical part with spokes of varying size protruding from either end. He moved the stepladder closer to Bumblebee’s head. After instructing Bee to tilt his head to his left and warning him that he was going to fix the injuries on his neck, he handed the part to Charlie.

“Here’s the last bit, other than fixing his dents,” came the rough voice. “As you know, we always work on the critical parts first, so seeing as this is the last technical issue, it’s not a problem if you don’t do it correctly,” he said. “Besides, I’m right here to instruct ya.”

Charlie nodded and turned to Bumblebee. “Hey,” she said softly, “I’m going to have to work on your neck. It’s just me,” she assured him as she reached out to move some wires aside as Ratchet instructed her. The young bot flinched slightly, but otherwise remained still. He didn’t recall getting injured around his neck, but passed it off as not noticing it due to the adrenaline. Charlie followed Ratchet’s instructions to a T, occasionally asking questions. After about an hour, she took a step back and placed her hands on her hips, looking to Ratchet as he gave her a look that vaguely resembled approval. 

“Nice work, kid,” he said, “Though it took ya long enough.” Charlie swatted at his arm and rolled her eyes, saying how it was only her first time doing any sort of part replacement on a mech. She looked to Bumblebee as he sat up, smiling softly at him. 

“Hey,” she said, placing a hand over the servo closest to her. “Feel any better?” He buzzed and halfway shrugged. “Well, lets get you some rest, kay?” He nodded in response and swung his legs over the side of the cot. He waited for Charlie to climb down from her spot before heading toward his designated room in the base. Charlie followed after him, taking larger steps to keep up with his pace. 

Once inside the room, Bee picked her up and settled into his berth, placing his human in his lap. She settled in almost instantly, nestling between his legs with her back pressed against his chest. A servo came to rest against her upper body, and Charlie wrapped her arms around it and rested her head against his arm. She sighed contentedly after she was settled in and felt Bee lean back against the wall. 

After a long stretch of silence, Charlie began humming quietly to herself. Humming turned to soft singing, and Bumblebee’s radio began quietly playing along to the song once he recognized it. He made what was supposed to be a content buzzing sound, but it sounded different from how it usually was.

“Bee?” Charlie craned her head to look up at him. “You feeling okay?” He shook his head a bit, as if he needed to clear his processor. Maybe Charlie had just not put that part in correctly without the medic noticing. Or, he thought, maybe she had accidentally bumped what was left of his voice synthesizer (which as far as he knew, was mostly cables). As his processor filled with possibilities, suspicion began rising along with a spark of hope. Looking down to meet Charlie’s concerned gaze, he prepared himself for disappointment. Air entered his intake vent, and the sound that came from him made him want to cry tears of joy. A low buzz and a gravely, scraping noise, and then-

“ _Char_ -lie.” 

Charlie’s eyes widened, her mouth agape. “Bee,” she nearly whispered, “Did… did you just speak?” Her voice conveyed shock, disbelief, and confusion all at once.

“Charlie,” he said again softly, this time with more conviction. “Charlie, Charlie, Charlie,” he said, a mantra. His optics lit up as if he were smiling. He picked her up so she was level with his face before speaking again.

“I love you so much, Charlie.”

Her throat tightened and hot tears pricked at her eyes. “I love you too, Bee,” she sniffed. As she spoke, she pressed her forehead against his and placed her hands on his cheeks. Happy tears streamed down her cheeks, crying for the both of them. 

He shifted so that he was laying on his side and placed Charlie next to him. He laid a servo over her middle as she made herself comfortable, pressing as close to him as she could. After a long stretch of silence, she spoke. 

“Is that what your voice sounded like before… y’know…?” She knew that it was a sensitive topic for him. He’d told her the situation as best he could on a night when his memories became too much for him. She’d stayed by his side the entire night, sore muscles be damned.

He had to think a moment to use his voice, so used to using his radio at this point that actually speaking felt foreign to him. “It’s… different than what I remember. It’s a little bit deeper. And I think it has more range,” he said slowly, trying to run a scan on it to see how much was different than what he remembered.

“It’s so…” She couldn’t find the right word to describe it, the words hung in the air. To be honest, she thought it fit him perfectly. It made her heart stutter as she replayed the words in her mind: _‘I love you so much, Charlie.’_ If she were lovesick before, it was even worse now. She felt kind of guilty about it – she loved him with all her heart, she knew that, but there was just something about hearing his voice that made her want to just listen to him all day long. She suddenly yawned, the long day finally wearing on her. 

A chuckle reverberated through his chest, his optics soft as he gazed at her. “Sounds like someone needs a long few hours of stasis,” he said, moving up to brush her hair out of her eyes.

“‘M not that tired,” she murmured in reply, though she let her eyes slide shut. She felt the weight of his servo return to her side.

“Does someone need a lullaby?” he teased. Her lips twitched upwards as she rolled her eyes at him in slight annoyance. She heard a bit of static before a slow song started playing on his radio. She began to protest, saying how she didn’t need him to play her a song, but fell silent as he began singing along to the lyrics.

“Woah,” she whispered, “You can sing? I mean, I know most people are capable of some sort of singing because they have a voice and-”  she babbled. He laughed lightly an shushed her. He pulled her close and continued singing until her breathing slowed into a deep, rhythmic pattern, letting himself fall into stasis soon after.


	2. Spark to Soul

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Charlie teaches Bumblebee how to slow dance, and Bumblebee contemplates something of great importance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got some inspiration for this from charbee4ever from the last chapter, and I ended up pushing this out within an hour or so as far as I can tell (what even is time awareness?). Once again, this isn't beta read, and I haven't really looked over it that closely, so please forgive any mistakes!

Bumblebee’s optics flickered to life in the dim light of the room, light filtering in through the thin curtain that covered the large window adjacent to the large berth. One by one, his systemic functions came online for the day. He registered the soft sound of breathing beside him, and a small warmth curled up against his side. Craning his neck to look down without shifting around too much, Charlie’s sleeping form came into view. He gently prodded her with a finger to wake her, to which he was met with a quiet groan of protest.

Charlie stretched and peered up at him, squinting against the morning light. Her hair was messy and her clothes from the day before were wrinkled and skewed. Her muscles were sore from sleeping on the stiff berth without a pillow to rest her head on, as it was left behind in the common room on the couch. She got up from where she laid and pressed a kiss to Bumblebee’s helm in greeting before rummaging through her backpack to pull out a fresh pair of clothes. As she dressed, her mind wandered back to the previous evening, events replaying through her head. 

Once she was ready for the day, she headed out to the common room with Bumblebee following behind. Ratchet was already up and working dutifully at his station, welding two pieces of metal together. Optimus was at one of the makeshift desks and sorting through various backlogs on a cracked monitor. The other bots were around a table talking amongst themselves -- it seemed like it was a slow start to the day, with the exception of the two mech’s activities. Then again, she thought, those two were almost always busying themselves with one thing or another. Ratchet spared her a glance as she passed his station, and she smiled warmly at him, a look meant to convey her thanks for the day before. Ratchet grumbled something about unnecessary gratitude for something that should’ve been replaced long ago, but his lips twitched upward in a slight smile.

Bumblebee had already made himself comfortable on the couch in front of the blank screen of the television, Charlie’s pillow placed in his lap and a comforter nearby and ready for her to spend the lazy morning with him. She made her way over to him, and he reached down to place her in his lap, cushioned by the comforter and her pillow. They listened to the radio that played in the background for a long while. The first few notes of a slow song began playing, and Charlie looked up to Bee with a grin.   
“Hey,” she said, “Do you wanna dance?”

His antennae perked, his audial receptors taking note of the song that played. “Sure,” he nodded, his optics conveying a smile. The other bots glanced over at the sound of his voice, but none seemed surprised. Had they known about Ratchet’s plan? He placed her on the floor and put the pillow and blanket aside, standing and moving to a more open area so they could move freely. “If I’m being totally honest though, I don’t really know how to slow dance,” he said sheepishly.

“It’s okay,” Charlie assured him. “You just kinda sway from side to side and move around. Just do what feels right.” He nodded in response and held out his servos to her. She reached up to hold onto them, and the two began moving along with the music. On occasion he would take a step too big for her to match, but besides that and the occasional stumble on Charlie’s part, they kept a steady rhythm. 

“This is nice,” he said softly. “I wish we could do this more often.”

Charlie hummed, nodding. She knew that these moments would be few and far between, especially with their war looming ever nearer. She cherished the quiet moments when they were able to just relax for a little while. They fell back into a comfortable silence. 

The silence didn’t last long on Bumblebee’s side, however, as he accepted a comm link between himself and Optimus Prime.

‘Yeah?’ Bumblebee asked through the connection, sparing a quick glance at the larger bot.

‘…You two aren’t… _are_ you?’ Optimus asked. 

Bumblebee was silent for a moment. He knew what the other was asking. ‘I mean- I’ve felt it, yeah. I don’t know when it happened, but I can sense it. I can sense  _ her. _ That’s how it usually feels, right? At least, that’s what I’ve been told.’

A sigh. ‘Yes,’ Optimus replied. ‘But-’

‘I know!’ Bumblebee sounded a mix of exasperation and lamentation. ‘It’s never happened between a human and a Cybertronian before.’

‘Do you think you’ll tell her?’

Another sigh, this time from the scout. ‘I think I have to. She has a right to know. I just- I don’t know when I should tell her. How do I know if the time is right?’

Optimus Prime had far more time to learn about these kinds of situations than Bumblebee had, and yet he couldn’t have seemed more inexperienced. ‘I don’t know. It will have to be something you decide for yourself.’ A pause. ‘Good luck, friend.’ With that, the comm link went dead.

Bumblebee didn’t know when he stopped swaying, but the song had ended and began another song, and Charlie was looking up at him curiously. He shook his head a bit and shrugged at her, finding himself at a loss of words.

Primus, how was he going to tell her? How does a giant transforming robot from another galaxy tell a human that his spark -- his very existence -- had subconsciously bonded to her? It would be nearly impossible to do without scaring her away. He looked down at the subject of his affections and began swaying again. He held her close and pushed his thoughts aside, opting to stay in their shared moment. He’d tell her. Eventually.

 


	3. Scream Your Heart Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bumblebee finally works up the courage to tell Charlie how he feels.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woah, two chapters in one day? Excuse the shortness of it, but I just had to get this out of my head.

Charlie Watson was not a spiritual person. Although her stepfather, Ron, was religious, she hadn’t grown up with any sort of beliefs regarding the earth’s origin or where humans came from. She’d never thought to ask, but if she had, she imagined her mother would tell her a condensed version of the theory of evolution. She came to learn that while Cybertronians did have some semblance of an origin story, they couldn’t trace it all the way back to the beginning. It was understandable, she supposed, that there was often little to no explanation when it came to the beginning of time, aside from claiming that an all-powerful being had created everything. No, Charlie Watson was a woman of science and fact; tangible things that could be explained. 

That said, when she learned about sparks, she was fascinated. The very existence of a Cybertronian nestled right within their chassis? How a spark was the human equivalent of a soul? She couldn’t help but want to know more. She never considered, however, that a spark could actually reach out to another and forge a bond that both persons could sense. A bond so strong, she had been told, that it would last until the end of time. Cybertronians partnered for life, and they were utterly helpless in deciding who they would be with. Unable to bond with another, even if their partner’s spark extinguished.

The concept of soulmates seemed too far-fetched for her tastes, but after learning about sparkmates, she had finally toyed with the idea. Did every human have a soulmate? Could they tell if they had one, or if they’d met them? What about those who didn’t end up with their soulmate, and were with a completely different person than they were meant to be with? Did that mean that fate had been wrong, or that it played some bigger piece in the world that no one could ever come to imagine? So many questions remained without answers, and it was all very confusing. The only thing more confusing than soulmates, however, was what Bumblebee had just told her.

“You- I’m sorry, what?” she asked, not sure if she heard him right. He had sat her down in the quiet of his room, explaining everything that she’d learned so far, and she listened carefully as if she were hearing it for the first time. He explained sparks, the allspark, and how their sparks chose someone to have with them for life. And then-

“Charlie, you- I think you’re my sparkmate,” he said. “I can feel you all the time as if you were right beside me. Even when I’m out here or on a mission and you’re back in Brighton Falls, I can tell when you’re feeling lonely, or happy, or when you’re angry. I have no idea if it works the same way with you -- with humans -- but I know that what I’m feeling is real. And to be honest, I’m terrified. I’m  _ so scared _ that you don’t feel the same way. And it’s your decision if you want time, or if you don’t want to be with me- I-” he sighed and gripped the back of his helm. “I love you, Charlie, and I know that humans don’t live for very long compared to Cybertronians, but I want to spend each waking moment with you for as long as we can.” With his feelings laid bare to her, he seemed to shrink before her. Raw emotion showed in his optics.

Finally, Charlie spoke. “I… wow,” she said, taken aback by his confession. “I love you too, Bee, but… forever is a long time. I don’t want you to be alone for the rest of your life once I’m gone. I would feel terrible knowing that once I die that you’re just out there on your own. Isn’t there some way to-” 

He cut her off. “No, there isn’t,” he shook his head. “I don’t get to choose, none of us  _ choose. _ I can’t take my feelings back,” he said softly.

Charlie swallowed thickly. “I… Can you give me some time to think?” she asked quietly. She needed time to wrap her head around it all.

He nodded in reply. Part of him felt crushed, but he also knew that she hadn’t said no. There was still hope. “Will you stay with me?” he asked. “Not- not like that, but physically, I mean. Will you? I understand if you want to leave.”

She smiled softly, eyes tired, and nodded. “Yeah,” she said. “Yeah, I’ll stay.”

Charlie Watson was not a spiritual person; those kinds of things could not be proven. She knew despite the lack of physical evidence, however, that she loved Bumblebee with everything she had. So why was she so scared? They both settled in to sleep. 

Neither of them slept that night.


	4. A Word of Advice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Optimus tries his best to give Charlie advice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I kind of rushed this because I wanted to get this out today. My parents are deciding to give me a "surprise" visit (aka I have to clean the apartment), and I have a test to take (hurray for open-book tests!). The rest of my day is probably going to be a bit hectic and I don't know what next week has in store for me, so I decided to push this on out to you guys! Please excuse any mistakes -- if I notice anything later on, I'll probably touch it up later.

It was probably around 5 in the morning when Charlie decided to get up. It was far earlier than she’d ever awoken, but seeing as how she hadn’t even slept, it didn’t really seem like much of an issue. She grabbed a change of clothes and some toiletries and headed for the full bathrooms that were on base for the convenience of the humans that kept everything in order. Once inside the cubicle-sized tiled room, she began undressing, creating a pile on the small bench on the dry side of the curtain. After setting the water to a comfortable temperature, she took a few long moments to just stand under the assault of droplets that were almost too harsh to be comfortable. Her mind kept relaying the events from the day prior on a cycle. She began lathering her body and hair with soap and shampoo respectively, relaying his confession over and over again. She stepped out of the harsh spray once she’d rinsed off, and turned to look at herself in the mirror above the sink. What did he see in her, she wondered? Her own face stared back, not about to give an answer anytime soon. Hands gripping the sides of the marble slab counter, she looked herself over. Tired, brown eyes stared back at her (had she always had those bags underneath? She supposed that more rest and relaxation couldn’t hurt). Thin lips twitched downward into a frown. Her eyebrows were knit together either with distress or analyzation, she wasn’t sure which. These things led to thoughts of her attitude in the past five years or so. Once her dad had died, she’d done a complete one-eighty. Dresses and skirts turned to band tees and her smile and laughter became scarce. Her own mother admitted to being fed up with her attitude just two years ago when she’d blown up about not being able to move on. What on earth did he see in someone like her?

Releasing her white-knuckled grip on the marble, she toweled off and finished getting ready for the day. After putting her dirty clothes and towel by her backpack, she ventured out into the quietness of the common room. Not many of the bots were up yet as it was still early, but she could hear Ratchet at his station. She briefly wondered if he ever stopped working. Optimus Prime seemed to be sharing a comm link with someone, but she couldn’t hear the details of the conversation to put enough pieces together to figure out who with. Bumblebee, it seemed, had left the base to do something, as he wasn’t in his room nor the large area they all usually resided in during the day. She sighed and turned back to face the medic.

“I hope you’ve got something good for me to work on today,” Charlie said. She needed something to keep her mind occupied and her hands busy, otherwise she was sure she’d go mad.

“Sorry, kid,” Ratchet said without looking up from his work. “I’ve got nothin’ for ya. Why dontcha see if Prime needs anything,” he suggested offhandedly. Charlie nodded in response and made her way over to Optimus, who had seemed to finish his conversation.

“Ah, Charlie,” he said as she approached. “What a pleasant surprise. Can I help you with anything?” he asked, polite as usual.

“Actually, I was wondering if you needed any help. Ratchet’s got nothing for me to work on today, so he thought you might need help with something.” 

“I don’t think I have anything to do at the moment,” he said slowly. “But I’m here if you need someone to, uh, lend an ear, as I believe the saying goes,” he smiled.

Oh no. Was her inner turmoil so noticeable that even he could see it? She shifted her weight between her feet awkwardly, avoiding his gaze.

“I understand, however,” he began speaking again, “If you would prefer to keep things to yourself. I-”

“No! Er, no, that’s not it,” she said. “It’s just that I don’t even know what to say. I have all of these thoughts swirling around in my head and yet I can’t form a single thing to say.” She sighed. “I don’t know what to do.”

Optimus was quiet for a moment before speaking. “If you’re up for it, I’m willing to stay and listen for as long as it takes for you to put your thoughts into words.” He just barely registered the quick nod she gave in reply. He reached a servo down to her level and she climbed on. Sitting in the nearby chair, he placed her on the ledge of what was serving as a desk. A long silence tore between them until she finally spoke.

“Bumblebee… Well, he told me something. I don’t know how to feel about it. I mean, I know how I feel about  _ him _ , but the specifics of it are-”

He held up a hand to silence her for a moment. “Did he happen to say something about sparkmates?” he asked, and he smiled knowingly at Charlie’s shocked expression.

“You knew?” she asked, bewildered. “But I-”

“I might not be an old rust bucket,” he said, quiet enough to be out of Ratchet’s audial receptor’s range, “But I do know a thing or two to be able to notice when two people love each other. And I’m sure I’m not the only one.”

“Oh, god,” Charlie groaned, “The other bots know?” Prime shrugged,  halfway nodding. “Oh,  _ god _ ,” she repeated. “That’s- I can’t believe this! They’re going to think I’m terrible for not answering right away, aren’t they?”

“That’s not necessarily true,” he refuted. “While it is common for Cybertronians to form a partnership shortly after sensing that they are sparkmates with one another, this is the first time that any of us have witnessed even a partial bond between one of us and a human. We don’t know if humans take on the capability to sense their partner, or even if the bond is capable of happening. Since there are so many uncertainties about your unique situation, we have all come to the agreement that none of us would say anything unless prompted. That includes not pressuring you for an immediate answer. Bumblebee knows that you need time, and I know that he’ll wait as long as he has to for you to come to a conclusion. That said,” he continued, “I also know that the more time that passes, the more insecure he will feel.” He noticed her worried expression and began speaking again. “However, you already know that earth months are a relatively short amount of time compared to us, considering our lifespan. Do not rush yourself, and things will turn out as they must.”

Charlie chewed on his words, the two of them once again falling into silence. “Thank you for taking the time to talk with me, Optimus,” she said. “I really appreciate it.”

“It is no trouble at all,” he assured her before letting her back down onto the floor. “I am always here if you need me.”

Charlie offered a half smile before making her way to the couch to contemplate all that had happened thus far with the scout. Just how was she supposed to answer his feelings? She curled up into the corner of the couch and sighed. She would have to answer him soon.


	5. Lover's Quarrel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bumblebee and Charlie have some sudden, unresolved tension, and Optimus is there once again to listen to her.

Charlie awoke the next morning to a throbbing pain in her neck. Actually, she realized, her entire body ached. Slowly coming to her senses, she realized that she was still on the couch, curled up into an uncomfortable position. She sat up slowly, careful not to move too fast in order to avoid stretching something that wasn’t ready. Once she was up, she cracked her back and neck -- something that scared the bolts out of some of the bots when they had first witnessed it. Apparently they thought she was literally going to die.

She looked around the hangar, and seeing no one in sight, left to see if Bumblebee was in his room. Her hunch was correct; he was laying on his back on the berth, staring blankly at the ceiling.

“Hey,” she called, which prompted him to look at her. “When did you get back?”

“A few hours ago,” he replied. “Uh, I didn’t know if you wanted to sleep in here, and you were already asleep and I didn’t want to wake you,” he added.

“Bee, of course I would have,” she said, a bit confused as to why he would think she didn’t want to. Oh, yeah. Their whole situation. The entire I-love-you-do-you-want-to-be-with-me-forever shebang. Part of her was upset at him for not just picking her up during the night, but she knew that he honestly didn’t want to make her upset, and she knew that sleeping on the couch was a bad idea. So why did she feel so agitated? She sighed and blamed it on her uncomfortable night. “Oh well,” she shook her head, “Let’s just get some work done, okay? It looks like everyone else is either asleep or out doing things.”

Bumblebee nodded and followed her out towards the giant desks. There was one that was human sized as well, which looked comical compared to almost everything else in the hangar. They each took a seat at their respective desks, doing some menial work that was tedious, yet necessary for the operations of the base. There was an uncomfortable silence between them; tension thick enough to cut through. Bumblebee was the first to break it.

“Listen, I’m sorry if I made you upset,” he said.

  
“What?” she asked, looking up at him. “I’m not upset. I just slept wrong.”

He seemed to contemplate her answer before the silence resumed. After a few minutes he spoke again. “Are you sure you’re not upset? I get the feeling that you are.”

“The only reason I _would_ be upset is because someone kept insisting that I _am_ upset.” She didn’t mean to come off so harshly, but sometimes the bot was too cautious with her for his own good.

“Fine then,” he muttered, “I just won’t talk at all.”

Charlie wanted to rip her hair out. “Are you kidding me right now? Seriously, I’m not mad at you! I thought you were supposed to be able to tell how I’m feeling or whatever, what with the whole sparkbond business. And besides that, we don’t even know if it works between a Cybertronian and a human,” she grumbled.

Bumblebee looked like he’d just been slapped. “Usually I can, but you’re giving off so many fragging signals that I can’t tell this from that! And for someone who’s not mad, you certainly sound like it.”

She grit her teeth and stood, the metal legs of the chair making a terrible screeching sound as it raked against the concrete. “I’m going out for some fresh air,” she said, walking off toward the bay doors.

Blinking against the sudden change in lighting, she shielded her eyes from the sun. She could see a truck headed her way, and she recognized it as Optimus. He drew nearer before stopping beside her.

“Charlie,” he said, “Is something the matter? You seem-”

 _“Don’t,”_ Charlie warned, “Do _not_ say it. I just need to cool off. I’m fine.”

“I do not understand how you can ‘cool off’ in this heat,” he mused. He paused before speaking again, softly this time, as if he knew what was going through her head. “Do you want to talk about it? We can go for a drive,” he offered, his door swinging open.

Charlie contemplated it for a moment before getting in, closing the door after herself. The A/C turned on, blowing on her face that had already started perspiring in the short amount of time she was outside. His engine rumbled as he made a u-turn to head away from the base, driving toward the desolate road nearby. For a while she looked out at the scenery. That is, if one could call it that; miles upon miles of nothing but cracked dirt and sand and the occasional tumbleweed didn’t make for an exciting view. She turned her attention to the inside of the cab: lights and buttons and all sorts of things made up the controls, and Charlie was pretty sure that some of them were just for show. Just as she was about to break the silence between them (a common theme, from what she’d noticed), Ratchet’s voice broke out over the radio.

“Prime,” he began, “There’s been a disturbance with one of the satellite towers located eight miles northeast of your position,” he said. “Mind checking it out?”

“Sure thing,” Optimus replied. He then directed himself to Charlie. “Mind coming with? I can drop you off back at the base if you’d rather not,” he offered.

Charlie shook her head. It was too soon for her to go back to face Bumblebee. That, and they hadn’t even had the chance to talk yet. “It’s fine,” she assured him. With that said, he turned and made his way for the location of the tower. They made it there within a few minutes, and Charlie’s heart stopped momentarily at what -- or rather, who -- she saw.

“Blitzwing!” yelled Prime as he approached. “Step away from the tower, and I may let you go in one piece.” Transforming smoothly, he placed Charlie on the ground behind him. “Stay back, I’ll handle him,” he said, not tearing his gaze from the decepticon.

“Ooh, how scary!” laughed the con, “What will you do if I don’t? Mince me?” he cackled. Charlie watched curiously as his face changed (quite literally). “Zat would be very inconvenient seeing as how I must follow orders.” Another face change. “How about you come show me what you are made of, tin man!”

Charlie looked between the two bots. “Maybe you should cut him into however many personalities he has,” she suggested dryly.

Blitzwing’s face changed yet again, and Charlie felt like the spinning his head was doing would make _her_ dizzy. “Oh, he has a pet! How cute!” he crooned. “I want one too! Oh, can I, can I?” he asked no one in particular.

Prime’s faceplate slid into place as he gripped his axe before running at the decepticon. Blitzwing ducked, narrowly avoiding a beheading. He crouched and swung a leg out in an attempt to trip him, but the bot grappled a nearby overhang to prevent himself from falling. Blitzwing stood to grab at him with both servos only to be met with the axe’s handle. He let go and feigned an attack before suddenly using his jetpack to zip to Charlie’s side. Picking her up by the back of her shirt, he flew high into the air, Charlie dangling precariously from his fingertips.

“You know,” Blitzwing said, “It’s really too bad you can’t fly. It’s so fun to watch things go _splat_ from up here!”

The woman had never seen Optimus so shocked before, or angry for that matter, as she watched his expression change from one to the other.

“Blitzwing! Don’t you dare!” he yelled, and even from her position she could see his jaw clench.

Blitzwing’s face changed as he looked between human and autobot. “I suppose if I can’t manage taking care of ze tower, I could always just use zis organic to get what I need,” he mused. “Very well, zen.” He looked down to his captive as she struggled in his grasp, either unaware or uncaring of the deathly height. He moved her to his opposite servo, this time holding onto the majority of her rather than by her shirt, and flew off. The last glimpse of Optimus she could catch was of him using his grappler to try and reach them, only to fall short by a few dozen feet.

Adding a checkmark to a very short list of times that he’s felt helpless, Optimus Prime watched as the decepticon flew off with one of the humans he had come to trust. He then added another check to the list as he considered the next course of action: how was he going to tell Bumblebee?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So at first I was going to write the situation with Starscream, but seeing as I've already written a blurb featuring him, I decided to use Blitzwing. That, and I may or may not have wanted to try my hand at portraying him. (He's probably my favorite con so far.) Also I have no idea if he actually has the split faces and stuff anywhere outside of the tfa continuum, but honestly I'm too tired to care atm lol. Also I know his one voice is more than just the th=z parts, but I was kind of lazy when writing this, so I hope you were able to use your imagination!


	6. Leverage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bumblebee lashes out at Optimus, and Charlie finds herself being used as bait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oops, this chapter is a bit shorter than usual (most chapters have been around 1000 words or so, but this one is just over 900). I'll try to make up for it with the next chapter, though.

Bumblebee felt his spark plummet into his lower chassis. It wasn’t easy to make the scout scared, but Optimus Prime’s words hit him like a freight train. Fear quickly turned to boiling rage.

“What the frag do you mean? You _LOST HER?”_ he all but screamed, servos clenching at his sides. “And to a decepticon no less! You lost her to Blitzbrain!” he exclaimed, throwing his servos in the air. His optics narrowed. “You’re supposed to be our _leader_ , Prime,” he said accusingly. “She should’ve been _safe_ with you.” A guttural sound reverberated in his chassis as he suddenly shoved the larger bot. “This is all your fault!” He began throwing punches at him, and after recovering from his shock, Optimus stood still and let the younger bot wail on him. Once he slowed, helm and clenched servos resting on Optimus’ chassis, the older bot spoke.

“Are you finished?” he asked coolly. Bumblebee lifted his helm to shoot him a glare. “You and I both know that fighting each other won’t bring her back.

Bumblebee turned from Prime to look anywhere else. “Yeah,” he muttered, “You’re right. I’m going to go find her,” he said.

“Bumblebee, you don’t even know where they are -- what can you possibly hope to do at this point? The best course of action would be to wait until we sense decepticon interference and-”

“With all due respect,” Bumblebee spat, “I’m not going to sit around on my aft all solar cycle to wait for them to come to us. I’m _going_ to go find her.” His voice alone dared the Prime to stop him. Transforming, he sped off through the open bay doors, tires screeching as he departed.

* * *

The first thing Charlie could sense when she came to was the chilled air of the decepticon hideout. It reminded her of one of the underground caves she had visited on a field trip in grade school, the air encompassed with a feeling of condensation. The caves she remembered, however, did not come with the foreboding sense of dread. She blinked the bleariness away from her sight, and she moved to rub at her eyes, only to find that she’d been bound with what she assumed was spare cable and wire.

“Oh, it’s awake!” cried one of Blitzwing’s voices as he stomped over to her.

“Touch the organic, and I will not hesitate to melt you down for parts,” drawled a deep, apathetic voice. She turned to the source of the voice: a towering mech seated in what she could only describe as a concrete and metal throne. Cold, red optics met her gaze. “You,” he spoke slowly, “Do you know who I am?”

Charlie had never seen the con in person -- something that could actually be said for most of the decepticons -- however she recognized him as the leader known as Megatron. She just hadn’t expected him to be so huge.

“Megatron,” she growled, narrowing her eyes at him in a fierce glare (at least, as fierce as one could muster whilst craning their head to see a twelve stories tall robot).

“Ah, I see my reputation precedes me. It certainly is good to skip all the pleasantries that come with introductions, they are so tedious after all.”

“What do you want?” she snipped, doing well to mask the fear bubbling up within her.

“A mere organic could not come to understand the entirety of my illustrious scheme, so I shall narrow it down to only the part where you come in,” he said dully. “You see, you are now a vital component of winning this war,” he explained. “My resources tell me that you are quite close with the traitorous autobots and their human allies. Though you are not the ideal, you are close enough to the means of information that I require.”

“Oh yeah? Tough. You honestly believe that I know anything about their war plans? Even if I did, what makes you think that I would tell _you_ anything?” Charlie quipped.

“Oh, but you are gravely mistaken,” came the chilling voice, “It is not you specifically that I need, but rather your autobot friends. With their sickeningly heroic deeds, they would not stand to see an innocent harmed by one of our kind. No, you are merely the bait to lure them into my trap.”

She wanted to say something, anything to refute his claim, but she knew better. He was right -- they would never just leave her at the mercy of the decepticons. “I’ll tell them to run,” she said feebly. “I’ll tell them it’s a trap.”

Megatron showed a hint of a smile, a sight that made even Lugnut shiver. “My dear, you are quite naive. Follow through with that meager threat, and I will make sure that you never speak again.”

That was enough to shut her up. She leaned back against the damp, rocky wall and closed her eyes, willing herself to wake up from whatever nightmare this was. Their entire war hung in the balance, as well as the earth’s fate -- this she was certain of. She let her head fall back against the rock. How was she supposed to do anything? The bots considered her part of their ragtag family, a part of their cohort. And yet she was helpless to stop anything that would come next. Exhausted, she felt herself nodding off. Fate could really be cruel when it wanted to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I always feel like I rush things, even when I try to draw stuff out. I hope it wasn't too quick for everyone's tastes! [Glances at the part where Bee loses it]


	7. Reverb

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Charlie attempts to escape from the decepticon hideout in order to prevent Megatron's plan from coming to fruition.

Before the decepticons left to go into stasis for the night, Charlie was moved to a holding cell of sorts by the mech she assumed was named Lugnut. 

“You shall stay here, and do not move! Lord Megatron wills it!” he exclaimed before marching off. If she had any doubts before, she was  now fairly certain that all of Megatron’s minions had a few short circuits. 

If she wanted to keep the autobots away from Megatron, she would have to think of a plan, and soon. The only semi-plausible course of action she could think of was trying to escape while no one was looking. The outcomes she could foresee, however, were mostly grim. If she didn’t escape, she’d still be bait. If she got caught trying, she would likely be killed or worse. If she was caught and they didn’t do anything, the autobots would still come for her and fall for the trap. The severity of the situation was made entirely clear. She couldn’t just sit and do nothing, though. 

She looked around the cell, taking note of everything. There were some cracks in one of the walls; she could try to smash the rock with something, but decided it would be too loud. That, and she wasn’t even sure if it led anywhere. The lock that held the door shut was old and man-made, meaning she could pick it, however she didn’t have anything to pick it with, and wouldn’t be able to do anything since her hands were bound behind her back. Finally, she spied a bar that appeared to be loose. Silently, she moved closer to the rusted bars. Upon closer inspection, the bar looked as if it could be twisted in place, and it had a slight bend in the middle. She put her back to it in order to grip it with both hands and began wiggling it slightly. After a few minutes, she was able to dislodge it from its base and quietly set it down before squeezing through the gap.  _ So far, so good. _

Charlie made her way through the rocky cavern, keeping alert the entire time. She was beginning to doubt that Megatron had any sort of nighttime guard until she heard the steady  _ thump, thump, thump _ of heavy pedes hitting the ground. She quickly ducked behind a wall as two guards passed by, communicating over the commlink that everything was as usual. Once they passed, she slipped behind them and made her way in the opposite direction. After several long minutes of searching for an exit, she spotted what looked nearly identical to one of the base’s communicators. She had half a mind to try to use it to signal her location to the autobots, but quickly realized that leading them here was the last thing she wanted. That, and she didn’t know if the cons were monitoring the link. Also, she couldn’t read Cybertronian, so she couldn’t even reliably operate it in the first place. She scrambled underneath the overhang of the device that protruded outwards like a desk as a few more guards turned the corner into the tunneled hall. She emerged once they had continued onto the next passage.

After seemingly hours of fruitless searching, she felt a breeze of fresh air coming from one of the tunnels. Turning down it, she saw the open-ended hall break out into an expanse of starlit sky. Still cautious, she only increased her pace minutely. She was almost there. The exit was twenty feet ahead, ten feet, five, and then-

Wailing sirens echoed from within the maze, alerting the patrol units to her escape. She must have overlooked the security panel embedded into the rock. Taking her chances, she began running as fast as she could. She didn’t know where she was going, but anywhere had to be better than the hideout. She nearly tripped as she heard the sound of a blaster charging up, and she took a moment to glance over her shoulder.  _ Scrap.  _ One of the guards pointed his blaster at her as others emerged from the entrance. She turned back to the open terrain before her, willing herself to go faster as the guards began shooting at her. Pain flared up her leg as she stumbled and fell to the ground as she was hit. One of them reminded the others that she was needed alive. They were running toward her, the stomp of their pedes nearly shaking the ground. Just as she thought she would be taken back, the roar of an engine came through to her. A flash of yellow zipped by her, sending the cons flying before skidding to a stop nearby.

“Bee?” Her own voice sounded foreign, laced with adrenaline and fear and relief.

“Charlie! You’re hurt! We gotta get you back to base. Get in!” he ordered. One of his doors transformed to cut away the wires that bound her.

She pulled herself to her feet by his open door, climbing in. Before she was even buckled in, Bumblebee sped off, leaving the decepticons in the dust.

“Are you okay? What did they do to you?” His voice was filled with a mixture of panic and relief.

“Megatron was trying to use me to get to you and the others,” she said, wincing as the adrenaline began to wear off and pain began to take its place. Her leg was bleeding profusely from the shot, red beginning to stain the interior of his alt mode. She peeled off her shirt and pressed it into the wound in an attempt to slow the bleeding. “He was going to try to get informa-”

“Megatron was there?” he cut her off. He was torn between getting Charlie to safety and going back to fight. He cursed, then activated his comm link. “Prime, tell Ratchet to get the med bay ready. I’ve got Charlie, but she’s been shot.” She could hear Optimus on the other end ordering human medics on standby.

The base came into view soon after. Bumblebee transformed and brought her inside, cradling her in his servos. He set her down gently on one of the cots so the human medics could help her. He vaguely registered them telling her that it was a good thing that she applied pressure, but the hiss of pain she made when they removed the cloth rang loud in his audial receptors.

“Be careful with her,” he demanded. Optimus placed a servo on the scout’s shoulder in an attempt to calm him. 

“She is in good hands,” he assured him. “We must let them work. Come,” he said, ushering him away from the med bay. Bumblebee was reluctant to let her out of his sight so soon, but complied nevertheless.

After she was treated and sent on her way, she headed over to Bumblebee on her new crutch. “Hey,” she said softly, patting his leg as he sat on the couch. He reached down to pick her up, but hesitated and retracted his hand. He didn’t want to risk causing her more pain.

“How bad is it?” he asked, eyeing the crutch and her bandaged leg. He could still feel the copper-scented residue on what was now hidden beneath layers of metal.

“I’ll have to have some physical therapy,” she said. “It didn’t hit anything important, so it’s not that bad,” she explained. She could see his worry. His posture was rigid, his servos clenched, his optics scanned her all over in case she was hurt anywhere else. He wanted to say something, anything, but even with his new voice synthesizer, he couldn’t form the words.

“Listen,” Charlie said after a few moments. “I-” she sighed. “I’m sorry for earlier. I shouldn’t have said what I did. In fact, I don’t know why I said any of it. I think I was scared -- I don’t know. But I do know that I love you,” she said, meeting his gaze. “I don’t know how long I have, but I know that I want to spend my time with you. I was so caught up with the technicalities of things that I didn’t even stop to think that maybe it just doesn't matter. Yeah, our situation is… really different, and we don’t know anything about what we’re doing, but I’m willing to try to figure all of this out, as long as you’re by my side.”

“Charlie…”

“I don’t know if there’s a human equivalent of sparkmates, or if we have a choice in the matter, but in any life, I’d choose you,” she said softly, and he looked back at her with utter adoration. He carefully picked her up and held her close as she pressed a kiss to his helm, and in turn he inadvertently let out a happy whirring noise.

Neither of them knew what the future held in store, but they’d be sure to face it together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well I'm sure we've all come to realize that I'm terrible at coming up with endings, but my impatience combined with the encouragement of my friends to just leave it as is (or to make it super corny) basically let things play out like this. I've got a few underdeveloped ideas for my next fic, but I'm always up for recommendations/suggestions! Thanks to everyone who's read this far, and thanks to everyone who left kudos! See you all in the next fic.


End file.
